Warming Up
A large area of high pressure centered over the southeastern United States will begin pumping warm air north once again.
Already, milder air is beginning to work its way into our region. Temperatures this morning are split, with upper 20s and low 30s in the north and east, while the south and west have warmed into the upper 30s and low 40s.
Skies will be sunny throughout the day, mixing with just a few occasional thin clouds. The sunshine will help give temperatures an extra boost.
Most areas will make it into the 50s today, but a few will reach or slightly exceed 60 degrees. This is most likely in the Southern Tier and Genesee Valley. The coolest temperatures, in the low 50s, will be along the shore of Lake Ontario in Wayne and Cayuga County, and throughout the hills in and around Cortland and southern Cayuga counties.
While the flow of air will be a warming flow, winds will remain from the northwest as air travels up through the Plains, into the Great Lakes and down towards the Mid-Atlantic. The wind today will be nothing like yesterday, with speeds under 10 mph and gusts around 20 mph.
Partly cloudy skies are expected tonight, with light winds turning to the south and southwest. Temperatures will initially drop, but then will rise up a couple of degrees before dawn. There will again be a west-east split, with low and mid 40s near and west of Seneca Lake. To the east, temperatures will make it down into the mid and upper 30s.
Wednesday will have clouds mixing with sunshine. A stray spit of rain cannot be ruled out, but most areas will stay dry. Even those that do see a few drips of rain will probably not see enough to wet the pavement completely.
Southwest winds in the morning will turn to the northwest in the afternoon. Wind speeds will be similar to today.
Temperatures will reach their high point of the week, topping out in the mid and upper 60s for most areas. Even higher elevations should break the 60 degree mark.
Cooling Down
After Wednesday, the temperature will take a meandering, slow, downward path.
Thursday will only be a couple of degrees cooler than Wednesday. This will be due to an increase in cloud cover more than anything else. Some sunshine will still be possible, but mostly during the morning hours.
A period of rain is likely either Thursday Night or Friday. The timing of this rain continues to vary greatly on the models, leading to lower than usual confidence. The trend seems to be for an earlier arrival and departure, which could mean much of Friday will only have scattered showers about.
Whatever the case, temperatures on Friday will retreat with a large spread from north to south. Areas along the shore of Lake Ontario may not reach 50 degrees, but some parts of the Southern Tier could make one more run at 60 degrees if the weather stays mostly dry. Most areas will end up somewhere in the middle.
Saturday will be cooler still with most areas not reaching 50 degrees. Skies will be a mix of sun and clouds, and rain is not currently expected.
Temperatures may make a brief return to the low 50s on Sunday, boosted by southerly flow ahead of a cold front. This front should also bring a few rain showers.
Cool air will entrench itself into the area by Monday with highs in the low 40s. A few lake effect snow showers will be possible, increasing in likelihood Monday night and early Tuesday.
Tuesday looks to be the coolest day, with highs mainly in the 30s. From there, a slow trend towards milder weather will be possible. The overall pattern through the end of March, however, does not look as warm as it has been the last few weeks.
More Information:
» Finger Lakes Weather Radar
» Zip Code Forecasts
» Get the FLX Weather Mobile App
This graphic represents an average over the entire Finger Lakes region. Localized variations should be expected.
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